FRANCO van der Merwe said it would be a 'fairytale' if London Irish can defeat Saracens and Bath to stave off relegation from the Aviva Premiership, writes Richard Ashton.

Exiles' dreams were dealt a major blow with a 45-5 defeat to table-toppers Exeter Chiefs on Sunday, leaving them nine points adrift of Worcester Warriors with only two games remaining.

First up are last season's European Champions Cup winners Saracens at Madejski Stadium on Sunday, April 29, before Irish travel to Bath for their final outing.

And van der Merwe revealed: "Every game for us is a play-off and we need the points, it’s as simple as that.

As long as there’s a bit of a chance (of survival), we’ll fight to the very end.

"Throughout the season the guys have shown unbelievable character and I have so much respect for the players. They are honest men working really hard."

He continued: "We’ve got a slim chance but we’ll give it a go. We won’t lie down and get kicked over.

"It would be a fairytale if we can do it, it would be great. As long as there’s a little bit of hope, we’ll keep on fighting."

The South African's defiant attitude was backed up by recently-appointed technical director, Declan Kidney.

The Grand Slam-winning coach stated: "There’s nine points in it and 10 points to play for so we’ll keep fighting. We’ll keep doing that right to the end.

"We have a cup final against Saracens. It’s an all-or-nothing match."